И. Н. Гусева; З. Ф. Котлова · 1964
This article reviews the Atlas of the Azerbaijan SSR, published in 1963. The atlas, comprising 218 pages, is organized into five main sections: introductory, natural conditions, economy, cultural development, and history, providing a comprehensive characterization of the republic's nature and economy. The review analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of each section, noting that while the structure generally conforms to standard comprehensive national atlases, it lacks a dedicated "Population" section. The article critically examines the cartographic methods used for geological, climatic, hydrological, soil, and Caspian Sea maps, pointing out issues such as inconsistent scales, duplicated content, and unclear legends. Overall, the atlas is recognized as a valuable synthesis of regional knowledge, though certain cartographic aspects could be improved.
Р. С. Нарских; Г. А. Правоторова · 1964
R. S. Narskikh and G. A. Pravotorova review the Atlas of the Azerbaijan SSR, published in 1963 in Azerbaijani (10,000 copies) and Russian (20,000). Scientists from the republic’s Academy of Sciences institutes, assisted by ministry and departmental specialists, prepared 176 maps, 28 inset maps and supporting texts and graphics from long-term research and data mainly current to 1 January 1961. A cartographic factory jointly developed the project with the scientists and undertook cartographic compilation and publication. The review surveys the atlas’s introductory, natural-conditions, economic, cultural and historical sections. Natural conditions occupy nearly half the atlas; the reviewers emphasize its 33 climate maps, detailed groundwater and hydrological mapping, soil erosion, vegetation, wildlife, conservation and coverage of the Caspian Sea. They describe thematic techniques including isolines, area symbols, cartograms and cartodiagrams, praising pictorial wildlife symbols for readability. Economic coverage includes industry, energy, agriculture, ten economic-geographic regions, transport and economic links. They particularly commend irrigation mapping and agricultural maps showing collective-farm income, pasture use and mineral-fertilizer application. Education, health care, resorts, historical maps and monuments complete the coverage. Criticisms concern inconsistent mud-volcano depiction, questionable runoff zoning, industrial centres sized by population, some agricultural map ordering, insufficient coordination with comparable maps in the Armenian SSR atlas, and unexplained local irrigation terms in the Russian edition. The reviewers nevertheless rank the atlas among the leading Soviet regional comprehensive atlases, praising its scientific detail, reference material and production quality, and recommending it for studying the republic’s nature and economy and for preliminary economic planning.
З. И. Мартынова; А. А. Минц · 1964
This article critically reviews the 1963 Atlas of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, situating it within the development of Soviet regional comprehensive atlases and comparing it particularly with the atlases of the Armenian SSR and Irkutsk Region. Using a systematic examination of thematic composition, map scales, representation methods, organizational logic, supplementary graphics, and printing quality, the author evaluates the atlas’s scientific and practical value. Designed as a scholarly reference work, the atlas contains 210 maps and diagrams covering introductory and natural conditions, economy, culture, and history. Its strengths include broad thematic coverage, effective integration of maps with diagrams and concise explanatory texts, high-quality cartographic production, and detailed treatment of geology, climate, hydrology, mineral resources, agriculture, industry, transport, and economic relations. Especially notable are the 26-map section on the Caspian Sea, which functions as a compact regional atlas, and several innovative themes reflecting Azerbaijan’s distinctive environment and resource base, including thermal waters, atmospheric circulation, synoptic processes, seismicity, mudflows, river-water chemistry, runoff intensity, and soil erosion. The economic maps effectively document Soviet Azerbaijan’s industrialization, petroleum and gas sector, irrigation systems, agricultural specialization, and regional economic structure. Nevertheless, the review identifies important deficiencies: incomplete coordination among related thematic sections; inconsistent indicators and classifications; insufficient representation of agricultural productivity, costs, and agroclimatic or agrochemical conditions; and map sequencing influenced by page format rather than analytical logic. The most serious weakness concerns population mapping. Reliance on administrative averages, inclusion of urban populations in district-density calculations, and failure to distinguish altitudinal settlement patterns distort Azerbaijan’s highly uneven population distribution, while recent urban growth and functional city types receive inadequate attention. Some illustrations are also judged inferior to photographs. Overall, despite these shortcomings, the atlas is assessed as a successful achievement of Soviet cartography. Its thematic breadth, methodological variety, clear design, and detailed depiction of Azerbaijan’s natural resources and socioeconomic transformation make it a valuable comprehensive representation of the republic and evidence of the advanced state of geographical research at the time.
